Rain begins to dribble overhead, each drop sending a vibration across my water-filled bucket. I'm nearly home from the reservoir nearby, that's how we get water around here. Without electricity and years of disuse, none of the faucets work, but thankfully the drains still do. Frequent trips to the reservoir are a pain in the butt but it's worth it to be able to drink water and have sponge baths.
I approach our tall house right as the rain begins to pick up. As soon as I walk in I drop the bucket on the floor, splashing water droplets around. I've grown stronger from doing this so many times but It doesn't mean my muscles don't ache and my fingers aren't left stiff.
I walk to the other side of the room where Lola is sitting on a futon scribbling away, I still don't know why these people had a futon in their living room but whatever, It's comfortable and we typically eat here.
"What'cha drawing?" I ask, peeking over at her sketchbook. This drawing is different from her norm, typically she sticks to animals and dragons but today is the skyline of a busy city.
It takes me a moment to figure out where because it's been so long, but I could never forget this place. Home.
"This? It's back home, drew it as best I could by memory," The way she says it makes it sound like she doodled a rainbow with crayons, but this is beautiful.
"How long did it take?"
"Hour or so," She returns to drawing out the cityscape, each building drawing with strikingly accurate details. She begins adding bits with a colored pencil.
She sets down her materials to smile at me jokingly, "Are you just going to watch me draw?"
Before I answer my eyes catch a red speckle on the page and It brings me back to a few days earlier. We went back to that rooftop every day since then, we would probably go today if it wasn't for the rain. But Every time we were up there I couldn't help but look for the red light, each time I asked Lola to help me look, trying to keep my optimism downcast. Each time she glanced around for a minute or so, but I don't think she believes I saw anything to begin with.
I plop down on the futon next to her, "That red light, what do you think it was?"
She sets her pencil down on the page, her jokester stature falling, "What does this have to do with you still watching me draw?"
I pick up her pencil and put it just out of her reach to get her full attention, "It doesn't have anything to do with that, I'm asking you about the red light."
She gives me a pitiful look and it makes me sick, "Cass, I don't think there was any red light."
"What if it was something?" I cheerfully stumble, looking for the right possibly, "What if was the portal or I don't know..."
"You think the portal is a pole with a red light on the top?"
"You know what I meant," I say, "What if it was our way out of here?"
She lets out a sigh, a loving sigh that just sounds like she really doesn't want to talk about this, "I know that you want to get out of here and all, obviously I do too, but I don't think getting your hopes up over nothing will do you any good."
I bite my lip, unsure of what to say next. She cares about me, I know she does and she just doesn't want to see me crushed. She and Nayan both think whether they'll admit it or not, that we will never get out of here, I just don't know how they could be satisfied with this life and not be willing to fight as much as they can.
"You're my sister, my best friend, I just don't think you should put yourself in a place where you'll lose your spirit," She says it so sweetly that it hurts.
I know that she just wants me to drop it, but I won't, not yet.
"I get that you didn't see the red light," I look at her, desperate for her to get past her sisterly love of trying to protect me from my own optimism, and simply trust me, "But what if it is something that could somehow get us out of here? What if we could be back home to Mom, Dad, and Nemo?"
She smiles at me, and I think just for a split second that she will give in, say that the red light really was a way out of here, "And what If we don't get back home to Mom, Dad, and Nemo? Cassie, the odds that anything is there really sucks, and wouldn't it be so much worse to get there and find out that there really isn't..." She trails off, but I know what was coming, that there Isn't a way out of here.
"That wouldn't matter!" I say, "What if we didn't go? Just left it as is and It actually was our ticket home?"
"I-" She looks optimistic, staring at the floor with a smile, but she shakes it off, "There wasn't anything there, Probably just your eyes adjusting to the sun."
She stands up hurriedly, discarding her partially finished drawing and walking to go grab a raincoat from the closet.
She brushes a few flecks of dust off the arm of the coat as she slips it on, but for the most part, they stick, like the effects of our conversation.
"Where are you going?" She wouldn't, "Your not..."
It takes her a moment of confusion to figure out what I mean before she lets out a laugh, "Were you even listening to me? Of course I'm not doing that!"
My face begins to burn with embarrassment, "Well, what are you doing then?"
"Going to Nayan's, I assume you're coming with? Though you can't make out with him while I'm there, too weird," She mockingly sticks out her tongue in fake disgust, as she turns away I can see the corner of a cringe at her forced words.
I decide that I won't get any further with the argument and decide to drop it, reminding myself to bring it back up layer.
No matter what I assure her she will always believe that I and Nayan are in some secret relationship, she makes comments like this every chance she gets, and while I don't like it, I would be lying If I said I don't get a bit of a kick out of it.
I tell her off, she does the same, I put on a raincoat that must've belonged to someone twice my size, and we're off into the downpour of rain. We speedwalk there, the moss and weed cracked pavement make it too slippery to run without slipping, something I can testify to. We walk through the abandoned streets only to the noise of rain pummeling the ground and pittering against the foliage creeping up each building.
Our disagreement leaves an awkward haze like the fog, something that neither of us could deny through the silence if we wanted to. A childish comment comes up every once in a while but nothing that isn't forced, I quickly began to understand why Lola wanted to go to Nayan's, to break the tension.
The bell to the coffee shop chimes overhead as we enter, as soon as the door is shut we peel off our jackets at set them down on one of the several dusty tables. While the shop hasn't been used in forever, the place has a cozy sense to it and If I really think about it I could pair the smell of coffee to the place.
We wordlessly climb up the stairs, me in front with her behind, once we get to the top of the creaky steps I knock on the door rhythmically.
There's a bit of rustling in the background, "Is that you guys?" He says it with just a hint of panic behind the basic caution that leaves me concerned.
"Yeah, it's us," I answer, a part of me considers leaving it at that but my curiosity gets the best of me, "Is something wrong?"
Lola shoots me a questioning look, I shrug her off and wait for an answer, but nothing does. Just more distant scrambling, "I'll be there in a minute."
Me and Lola inch closer to the door in the cramped stairwell to figure out what's going on, Nayan's footsteps hurridly click against the tiled kitchen, the door unlatches and he swings open the door with a smile.
"Hey guys, come on in," He's subtly out of breath when he opens the door for us to follow him in.
"What were you doing?" questions Lola without a hint of hesitation.
He laughs louder than necessary but quiets his words in embarrassment, "Cleaning up a fort."
"Why would you clean it up!" I tease, "Forts are amazing!"
Lola shoots me a mocking look that a best friend would give in front of their crush, I grit my teeth and deadpan her as discreetly as possible. I think Nayan notices anyway but just doesn't say anything.
He shrugs, "Didn't think you guys would be interested, aren't we all fifteen and sixteen?" He says, "Bit childish?"
We walk into the living room, but nothing seems out of place from a fort, must've not been too elaborate of a fort for it be cleaned up in so little time.
No, something is out of place, I can see the door, the bad door, the killer door. The checkered blanket lies on the ground coving the small opening on the floor, not pinned to the wall.
"Have you even met-" Lola starts.
"The door!" I scramble to move behind the box television and repin the blanket on the plaster wall, "Did you use the blanket for your fort?"
"Of course I didn't!" Panic crosses his features as he rushes in behind me, taking my spot behind the television, "I've got it."
"How did the blanket fall if it was pinned to the wall?"
He mutters something in Hindi under his breath, "I don't know."
Lola steps up from behind us, "What's in there, and why does there need to be a blanket?"
Forgot to explain that one.
"You know those rooms, the ones with the killer fog?" My tone is guilt-ridden from shining light on Nayan's mistake.
"Yes," A smile spreads across her face as she realizes what I mean, a laugh forming, "Wait is that..."
"Yes, yes, one of those is here, It really isn't a big deal."
"Why the hell would you live somewhere with that?!" Lola blurts through a laugh.
"I already explained to Cassie, It's perfectly fine, the door is stuck anyways," He says it reassuringly but actually seeing the bare wooden door, just makes it feel more dangerous.
He walks out from behind the television to push it up against the covered door, just like it was the last time I was here.
"That doesn't sound safe," At this point, I think she's just screwing with him.
"That's because it isn't!" Unlike Lola, I am not playing around, while she does know the risks, she couldn't possibly understand how big a deal it is. Just one or two breaths has painful effects, I couldn't even fathom being stuck in there.
Nayan just looks stumped on what to say next, good, "Just because the blanket fell doesn't mean the door will open," He walks away from the forbidden door, steering our attention away, "Did you guys come over to play a board game or something?"
I grumble knowing that the conversation is over, "Yes, or really just anything to do."
"We're bored," She shrugs cooly but doesn't seem bothered by Nayan dodging the topic.
He pulls out a game of what I think is Monopoly but none of us are really all too sure with the language barrier, we play for the next few hours. I suck at Monopoly so I'm bankrupt by the halfway point but I still have fun rooting for Lola who curses someone out every chance she gets and Nayan who after a while starts to get pissed for being sent to what we concluded is the jail so many times. A neverending laughter fills the room, and no matter how far away we are from the Earth dimension, times like these feel like a real home.
PLEASE DON'T SKIP A/N
A/N: The conversation with Lola was really tough to write and I still don't know how I feel about it, it forced me to realize that happy isn't a personality trait. It would be unbelievably helpful for some audience input on that conversation, so If you are reading this I need your help, even if you think you could come off as offensive or think you have nothing to say, trust me, THIS ISN'T TRUE. You could literally tell me it was the worst thing you've ever read or just say "ok" and I'd still be thankful, though I would prefer constructive criticism. Thank you for reading this far in my story and I hope you're having a great day. (that whole audience input thing is always appreciated btw, so you ever have anything to say please never be afraid)